Web Site: PinUpsForVets.com
Q. If you could just name a few, describe the responses from
vets that you found to be the most awe-inspiring.
Are you referring to the marriage proposal I received from the
troops that you can see on the "In the Field” pages of my website?
Well, that was pretty awe-inspiring, I would have to say! Well, to
be honest, every letter I receive from a veteran is such a heartfelt
response to the project! I invite you to visit the "In the Field"
pages and click on all the photos to read some of the many
inspirational messages I have received from veterans and deployed
troops.
Those awe-inspiring messages are just too numerous to mention. I
have also received so many letters through the mail that there just
isn't enough space here to reprint them all. Basically, the theme
running through all these letters and e-mails is that the "Pin-Ups
For Vets" calendar project has given a huge morale boost to the
deployed troops. They appreciate so very much this support from the
home front. The veterans and troops have written to tell me over and
over how appreciative they are for the work being done in this
project to support our hospitalized veterans.
Q. And what kind of reactions did you get from the
hospitalized vets that you have personally visited.
The vets are totally charming! They flirt and they sing for me and
tell me jokes. Here I am coming into the hospitals to bring a smile
to them, and they wind up making me laugh and smile. These veterans
are such sweethearts that I believe that I always come away with
more than I have given them. The vets are always surprised to get
the calendar gifts from the donors with personal messages of
appreciation.
I have seen that it makes such an impact on them to know that they
have not been forgotten and that they are appreciated for their
service to our country. I really enjoy reading to them the special
messages attached to each of the calendars! They also like meeting
the calendar girl in the calendar and always ask for autographs on
their calendars or they want me to write happy birthday messages on
the date of their birthdays. I have even been asked to put lipstick
kisses on lots of calendars!
I would post lots more pictures of my visits to the VA and military
hospitals, but due to confidentiality laws and photo release
restrictions, etc., I am not able to post pictures of most of my
visits to the hospitals. I have to respect the privacy of all these
patients. From our young Wounded Warriors recovering in military
hospitals, to our Gulf War vets, to our Vietnam veterans, to our
Korean War veterans, and to our surviving veterans from World War
II, and to those who have served in peace time, I have enjoyed
meeting and talking to each and every one of them.
Q. Out of all the photography that you have done for your
calendars, which pictures have been the most popular among your
fans?
Well, as I said before, the "Pin-Ups For Vets" calendars offer
something for every preference. With the changes in hair color and
the various costume changes, I honestly get such diverse responses
from the fans regarding their favorite photos that I cannot tell you
which photos have been the most popular.
I will tell you though that after the firefighters in Iraq received
the 2007 "Pin-Ups For Vets" calendars, some of them wrote to ask me
if I could do a special photo in the next calendar especially for
the firefighters. I took that request seriously and I did a special
photo for them that appear in the 2008 calendar for the month of
September. It was my way to honor and acknowledge these brave
firefighters in Iraq for the very difficult work they do! They wrote
to me and told me how much they love the firefighter pin-up photos
on my website and in the calendar!
I also try to honor the different branches of the military. The 2007
calendar featured the army pin-up girl and the navy pin-up girl. The
2008 calendar highlights the air force pin-up girl. The 2008
calendar cover features a sailor girl.
Q. You have received American flags that were flown by
military units in Iraq in honor of the "Pin-Ups For Vets" project.
Tell us more about that and how did you react when you received
them.
These three certificates of appreciation from the troops and the
three American flags– that have been flown in my honor over various
military bases and carried in combat support planes in and over
Iraq– have to be the most inspirational gifts I have ever received!
I have just been so honored by these acts of kindness from our brave
heroes in response to the "Pin-Ups For Vets" calendar project.
I really cannot put it into words how I have felt when I open these
boxes and see these beautifully folded flags that have once flown
over bases of our active duty military and carried in the skies over
Iraq. I am so very grateful to see the outpouring of response from
the troops for the calendar project. I never expected when I started
out with this idea to help our troops and hospitalized veterans that
it would touch so many people in such a positive way. I am so
grateful for these beautiful flags and I will cherish them forever!
Q. You were also selected as an “Outstanding Young
Californian” by the California Jaycees Foundation and the California
Junior Chamber of Commerce. How did that come about and how did you
react when you were notified of this honor?
As I have mentioned before, I am so appreciative of all the internet
bloggers who have reported on the "Pin-Ups For Vets" calendar
project. They have done such an awesome job of helping me spread the
word about this project to support our veterans and troops. It turns
out that one of the first bloggers who wrote about my project was
Michael Higby who writes the blog called "Mayor Sam's Sister City –
Home of Los Angeles Politics". He followed the progress of the
calendar project after he wrote about it, and as it happens, he also
was very active in the California Jaycees organization.
When the 2007 search for "Outstanding Young Californian" began, Mr.
Higby submitted my project and nominated me for this honor. I guess
the California Jaycees Foundation and the California Jr. Chamber of
Commerce members liked the project enough to honor me with this very
prestigious award. I was totally speechless when I heard that I had
been selected for this award. I never expected anything like this to
happen. The event was so nice and the actual award is so beautiful.
I know that I have to share this award with all my wonderful
supporters – I could not have done this alone.
Q. American Legion Post 360 is a co-sponsor for this project.
How did that come about and what would you recommend to other
American Legion posts and VFW (Veterans of Foreign Wars) posts who
would like to do something similar with your calendars?
I grew up near American Legion Post 360. When I was in my senior
year of high school, I received a college scholarship from Post 360
that recognized my academic and leadership accomplishments in high
school. I was so thankful to them for the recognition. Six years
later, when I came up with the calendar idea to help our veterans,
it seemed like a great way to do something nice for the veterans who
had once helped me.
I contacted Post 360 and asked them to be my co-sponsor on this
project. I told them that I would like to raise funds for American
Legion Post 360 to help them help our hospitalized Veterans. First
Vice Commander Nick Nerio was so very supportive and helped me with
the paperwork to get this sponsorship. After the 2007 calendar
fundraiser was completed, we all went to the Loma Linda VA Hospital
in Loma Linda California, and Post 360 presented the proceeds from
the calendar fundraiser to a program that would be caring for our
recovering Wounded Warriors.
In the meantime, I have tried to contact a number of American Legion
Posts and VFW Posts to see if their members would like to purchase
calendars to support our hospitalized Veterans. It is a great way
for each Post to show their appreciation for their fellow ill and
injured Veterans. The local Lake Arrowhead Rotary also stepped up to
the plate and donated several calendars for me to deliver to the
Wounded Warriors on my visit to the naval hospital in Balboa (San
Diego).
Q. Out of all of your effort for this project, what has been
your greatest satisfaction?
I think my greatest satisfaction has been knowing that one person
can make a difference in the lives of many other people. The
hundreds of letters of appreciation and the photos of the supporters
with the calendars are priceless to me. I never knew when I first
came up with this idea to help our veterans and troops that there
would be so much more to it than raising funds for underfunded
Veterans healthcare programs.
I just never expected the overwhelming response that this project
has received – especially the fact that it has been such a great
morale booster for the troops! I am so gratified that this project
has made such a positive impact on others.
Q. Are there any other modeling projects outside of the
“Pin-Ups For Vets” calendar that you have considered doing?
Well, I will have to cross that bridge when I get to it. I am not a
model by occupation but I certainly would consider any other
modeling project to help our troops.
As a matter of fact, I received two letters recently from our troops
in Iraq who came across my web site and loved the project and the
pin-up photos. They told me that they would like to paint my pin-up
photos on their wall in a work area to help brighten up the area for
the troops. They are sending me an army camouflage outfit that I
will wear in some more pin-up photos. I will send them the photos
and they will be sending me updated photos on the mural that they
will paint from my photos. I will post those photos in my "In the
Field" pages on my website.
Honestly, I never expected to wind up as the subject of a mural. I
am so complimented that the troops would like my pin-up photos so
much that they want to paint them on a wall! I will have to check
and see if Betty Grable had any murals painted of her during the
World War II years!
Q. For our troops who are deployed overseas in very dangerous
places, unless something bad happens, the media doesn’t really
report very much about our servicemen and women who are slogging it
out on a day-to-day basis. What would you like to personally say to
them?
I say it to them every time I send them a calendar or a poster. I
tell them that I want them to know that Americans appreciate their
service to our country and the sacrifices they make every day! I
don't want them to feel forgotten.
This is not a popular war... it is a very, very difficult
conflict... with many differences of opinion on all sides. I can
only imagine what our troops feel like being in harms' way and
knowing that many people back home don't support the war effort. It
is bad for morale. I want them to know that no matter what people's
opinions are of the war, that Americans absolutely do support our
troops. Americans want our troops to be safe in combat and to come
home safely. Americans' appreciation for our brave heroes is
constant, and so many people have come together to support our
troops.
I work with two outstanding non-profit groups who raise funds to
send these amazing care packages to the troops who write to me. I
receive calendar orders from all over the world and these people
from other countries want to do something to support our troops, as
well! I know that people all over the world and here in American
absolutely appreciate the sacrifices made everyday by our troops!
Q. If someone is thinking about buying a gift for a vet or
sending care package, what would you like to say to about your
calendar making a great present?
The "Pin-Ups For Vets" website (www.PinUpsForVets.com) really says
it all. I think that if anyone goes to the web site and sees the
wonderful letters of appreciation from VA and military hospital
personnel for the calendars and for the proceeds raised for our ill
and injured veterans, and then goes to the "In the Field" pages to
see the smiles of our troops and hospitalized veterans with the
calendars– well, I think those pictures are worth a thousand words.
The messages from the troops describing the morale boost the
calendar has given them and the certificates of appreciation from
the troops for the project – all of these are testimonials for
showing that the calendar does make a great present for a
hospitalized veteran or for an active duty military person. It is a
gift that has brought hundreds of smiles to our Veterans and brave
heroes overseas, and it is a gift that keeps on giving for 12
months. And best of all, it is a gift whose proceeds go to help our
Veterans healthcare programs that are often underfunded.
Question: And for anyone else who would like to find a tangible way
to support our troops, what would you like to say about the “Pin-Ups
For Vets” calendar as being a means of showing your appreciation to
our men and women in uniform.
Every personal message from a donor on a calendar that is sent over
to Iraq and Afghanistan, it shows the men and women in uniform that
civilians care about them and really appreciate their service to
America. We have to let our deployed troops know that they are not
forgotten and that they are brave heroes to all of us here and to
others around the world.
Many troops do not receive much mail from home and my wish would be
to send a "Pin-Ups For Vets" calendar or poster to each and every
active duty military person. I would also like to deliver hundreds
more "Pin-Ups For Vets" calendars and posters to each and every
patient in a Veterans or military hospital. I hope that the readers
of this interview will look into their hearts and find a way to
order just one calendar for me to send to a troop member or for me
to deliver to a hospitalized Veteran! I will be so grateful for all
your support in helping our troops and Veterans.
Please pass the word of this project on to your family and friends
so that we can all honor our Veterans and troops for their brave
service to our country. I send you all much thanks and appreciation
for donating a calendar or a poster to our men and women in uniform
and to our Veterans in hospitals all over the U.S.
Click here
to see the first half of this interview in
Part 1.
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